Monday, December 26, 2005

I wish I could say that I'm done with Christmas, but alas, the aftermath seems just as intense as the actual festivities. I'll be spending the greater part of what's left of today cleaning, making phone calls, and trying to figure out where I am on various work related projects. As such, blogging has been moved to the bottom of the priority list. What's more, blogging will take a back seat to more time sensitive things this week, such as participation in a wedding (and all the assorted accompanying activities), a looming deadline at work, and some other projects I can't get into here.

However, I would be remiss if I didn't at least post something about various stories that broke over the weekend. So, falling back on the old standby, here's a quick Holiday Round Up:

Possibly more development in western Ellicott City, which is sure to ruffle the feathers of the local activists fighting the Turf Valley expansion. A key factor in this latest development, however, is that the property in question belongs to the descendants of a signer of the declaration of Independence. It's an interesting, though long, story and Larry Carson does a good job of covering all the important details. Grab a coffee, give it a read, and if you're inclined to support either side, attend a hearing on the matter on January 5.

He may not have a chance in hell at winning, but the just-announced candidacy of Democrat Donald Dunn (presumably no relation to Blues Brother backer "Duck") is an intriguing one. With no hope of actually being elected, Democrats usually run for office in western Howard County just to prove to voters that there are choices, but Dunn's cause may not be totally lost. He's anti-taxes for seniors and a supporter of golf--the sport of elitist, cloistered Republicans if ever there was one (sorry, Dad). Finally, none of Dunn's foes can think of anything bad to say about him. Surely, this is some kind of trap.

This makes you wonder why they even bother with the guns: controlled deer hunt kills 123 animals, whereas drivers collect over 1,000 trophies. Let's get this straight, we've got far more deer than we need, to the point that the ruminants are actually degrading the local environment. "Thinning" the population is a good thing and the ostensible reason for the controlled hunts. However, we have far more success "accidentally" killing them with our weapons of mass production, automobiles, than we do purposefully trying to kill them with guns. Thus, drivers acting out of self interest are the true environmental stewards in this parable. How about that?

Didn't get what you wanted for Christmas? Talk to your local homeowner's association/quasi-government because it has money to burn...